Wynn Evans and Katya Jones “hand incident”

[Arche]

Can’t see a thread on this.

What is everyone’s view on this? Have spoken to a couple of Strictly fans at work about the seemingly inappropriate touching of Katya by Wynne and am massively disappointed that many think it was harmless and the reaction is disproportionate.

Just sick of pervy men! He did it on camera! He only cared about getting a quick thrill

Maybe it’s time to ask all dancers and contestants to behave with more appropriate conduct when not on the dance floor. The only person I would cuddle like that is an intimate partner, and then only in private spaces.

If it isn’t expected behaviour for them ask to play act intimacy everywhere then it would be clearer if lines were being crossed. In light of the abuse from last year I’m quite shocked that they are still so touchy and clingy.

oh dear its like kissgate all over again.

@greenday16B

100% agree. Love Strictly, but Tess is atrocious and always has been.

Saville’s wandering hands on TOTPs got explained away too

edit:sp

@Arche

Don't be so bloody rude! Calling Wynn a 'pervy man!' He simply popped his hand around Katya's waist and she brushed it back. She and he have been on TV today saying everything is fine. SHE said Wynn has done nothing wrong, and they are OK. Work colleagues and friends. Basically she told people to stop saying nasty things about him!

Some of the things said about Wynn online have been vile. Poor bloke. Did nothing wrong.

Vile thread.

I agree with this in general.

I think the BBC are behaving weirdly about SCD in general. I haven't watched it for years so am commenting without much knowledge beyond news reports, but why have they not instituted some basic principles around behaviour?

I wish they’d stop talking about the touching incident being ‘a joke’. It’s quite topical for my family as my teenage daughter has very recently had an issue with her sports coach touching/squeezing her round the waist in this manner, and patting her bottom too. It would’ve been good for this behaviour to be called out for the inappropriate nature that it is rather than being a ‘joke’ - even if it was irresponsible rather than deviant.

He didn't just 'pop' his hand around her waist though, did he? He was stroking his hand slowly down her abdomen

I think there is a huge amount of bandwagon jumping here.

What he did was nothing compared to some of the other couples..Sarah Hadland and Vito were practically shagging whilst waiting for the results.

They need to tone this touchy feely stuff down with couples - I get that it's to show how ' close' they are and what a wonderful couple they are, but it's completely unnecessary and for me would make an accusation of inappropriate touching quite difficult to prove.

Strictly is a bit messed up in my opinion anyway, men are seriously objectified and perved over, when it was Craig, Darcy & Bruno all they could talk about was mens backsides and torsos when judging.

Especially since there’s a thing called the Strictly Curse

https://metro.co.uk/2024/09/17/strictly-curse-full-list-affected-couples-21620912/

If Katya was OK with Wynne's hand there she would have left it, or covered it with her own. The fact that she pushed it away in full view of the cameras showed she was uncomfortable and didn't mind showing it. Good for her.

Agree, maybe there is a gaint invisible hand prodding them. Either that or drugs.

I don't understand the huge fuss. If he wanted to grope her then there is plenty of opportunity during rehearsals. His hand is not creeping to her breast, it's on her waist. Just like all the others.

Hysterical over reaction I'd expect from the gutter press but I thought MN had more intelligent readers.

Yes, and they need to pack it in. I remember the year AJ danced with Mollie King and the 'nudge nudge, wink wink' from the judges and Tess over their 'chemistry' was excrutiating. Iirc AJ had a girlfriend at the time. The hugging, kissing, grabbing seems to get worse every year and i often think it's just disrespectful to the real life partners of the contestants (and pros, for that matter). And when it's actively encouraged and expected it makes it v hard for anyone who dislikes it, for whatever reason, to speak up and say 'i'm not comfortable with that.'

I don't like Wynn, I find his schtick quite tiresome, and I don't get the impression he and Katya like each other much either, but I think this incident has garnered a bit of an overblown response. Contestants and professionals are, by the very nature of what they do and the show that they do it on, in constant physical contact. Lines are therefore very different to the normal levels of physical contact between colleagues and I imagine they do get crossed, usually inadvertently and without malice.

Wynn clearly went over Katya's boundary by touching her stomach, she asserted that boundary and he, from what we could see on the results show (where they weren't touching anywhere near as much, and he asked permission to hug her) abided by that boundary. Unless something comes out to say otherwise, I think it's a bit patronising to assume Katya hasn't handled this situation to her satisfaction.

I also find all the general touchy feelyness , after the actual dance, very weird. I could do without it to be honest, no need for it, and this is a perfect example.

I agree with you, OP.

It was so creepy and intimate, the way he slowly inched his hand around her.

Vom inducing.

Totally agree.

It's in the nature of the show that sometimes you'll end up accidentally putting your hand where it makes your partner uncomfortable, and they'll need to assert their boundaries.

The problem lies if they don't feel able to do that for whatever reason (a lot of us have been in that position unfortunately), or if a creep is using plausible deniability to repeatedly "accidentally" grope their partner. As a huge Katya fan I profoundly hope that that's not what's happened here.

Time for this program to be cancelled IMO. It became unwatchable long ago. Last time I watched it, I watched the actual dances only. The rest of the chatter and clips was just so uncomfortable. It has destroyed marriages and relationships, all sorts of allegations swirl constantly now. It isn't fun, it's just gross and weird.

All kinds of wrong, for so long, so much so that it's difficult to decipher what is going on with this particular incident.

It's a difficult one. Yes his hand appears to go in a bit deeper and higher than was strictly necessary but I don't think it's actually that unusual on this show. What has drawn our attention to it is her reaction. We probably wouldn't have looked twice otherwise. The directors obviously tell them to cuddle up to their partner, look affectionate and mutually supportive etc. when the camera is on them, and he clearly thought their 'friendship' was far closer than she thinks. He obviously has to have his hands on her all the time in practise sessions and on stage, and I think he just forgot his boundaries for a moment, or misjudged them. I imagine there's lots of endorphins and adrenalin flying around.

I saw her rejecting his high five as well. I don't watch every week so I've no idea if this really is a 'running joke' or not, but her face said otherwise to me. He clearly gives her the ick. She doesn't like him. As far as physical touch goes, she's doing what's required of her professionally, but absolutely nothing more. Any kind of PDA for the camera once off the dance floor, nah. She's not having it.

Realistically you aren't going to get on famously with everyone you are partnered with, there won't always be an easy chemistry, but you have to keep up the pretence for the sake of the show. Katya is barely managing that here.

I think Strictly has had its day. There is too much of this sort of drama and constant over-analysis of everyone's body language and behaviour now. If it was ever once a feel-good show full of wholesomeness, it's now constantly mired in scandal. Accusations of infidelity, bullying or misogyny, backstabbing, he said/she said nonsense. Once that starts to dominate, you can't see any of these supposed 'great friendships' forged between dancing partners as anything other than either sexual, seedy, exploitative, or just completely fake and contrived.

The men involved (both professional and contestants) are going to start questioning if it's worth it, given the risk they run of of being accused of something or other. Made out to be a complete sleaze, or just humiliated on TV by someone who obviously despises you.

@PrincessScarlett One of each pair is not a professional dancer. During training they make mistakes. They cannot always execute the choreography accurately. It’s unfair to expect that they can, The contestants and dancers hug and get very close all the time. What unwritten rules there might be are very very blurred.

One way on the dance floor would be to cut out lifts and stick to old fashioned ballroom dancing. No lifts. Len didn’t like lifts . Let’s cut out touching of any kind, including scantily clad female dancers jumping on the men. Do the men feel upset by this one wonders? You cannot please everyone all of the time but Shirley was ok with it back in the day.